


Scaevitas

by KurooCrow



Category: Naruto
Genre: F/F, F/M, M/M, Time Travel, at least they have each other, basically mamma sakura and her two sons, but hey, damaged sakura and temari, most people in this are gay tbh, sakura and temari go back in time and bond over Suffering(TM), sakura is gay, shes v proud of them and so am i, temari is v ace
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-02
Updated: 2017-06-13
Packaged: 2018-09-03 20:21:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 8
Words: 15,353
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8728822
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KurooCrow/pseuds/KurooCrow
Summary: Acceptance was only a step away, for if her body proportions didn't spell out the answer for her, all she needed to do was reach for her chakra. But she couldn't. It was like grasping for a single thread in a lake of dirty water. It was there, somewhere, but she couldn't see it. She couldn't see anything around it, for where she normally had unimaginable chakra contained was enough for three clones at the maximum.Yet, she continued grasping, hunting, searching, all in vain. But she couldn't just stop. Sakura was a proud kunoichi, apprentice of Senju Tsunade, a civilian born ninja breaking countless records and barriers.She was not a mere child. She was not a child, if not for her physical age then for the trials and pain she had been through. But most certainly, Sakura was not going to live through that suffering again.





	1. Prologue

Sakura knew from the beginning that it was a trap. She knew, yet still allowed herself to drag Temari along. Sakura condemned them both the moment she entered the small cave and she _knew that_. Yet, she continued on. Fighting forward through the few shinobi approaching and whispering words of encouragement to the fatigued kunoichi beside her.

It wasn't anger that settled within her as she faced the end. As she stared Kaguya in the eyes with no intention to back down it was a different feeling within her. One she could only describe as… peace.

The kunoichi knew she wouldn't last against such an opponent, but held her head high and raised a kunai before her. She could only assume Temari had accepted the same, hearing the quiet sigh that left the blonde's lips before she tightened the grasp on her kunai, slightly lost without the fan that had been destroyed by a fire jutsu three weeks prior.

Kaguya merely smiled at them, and the very action sickened Sakura. It was as if Kaguya knew the two wouldn't put up a fight. They should, for they were two of the last survivors from any shinobi village. But as the goddess regarded them with a sense of finality and victory, Sakura knew she could see how broken they were. How utterly and sincerely _defeated._

Sakura knew she was damning them both as she lunged forward with her kunai, yet somehow she knew Temari didn't mind either.


	2. Chapter 1 - Vivication

Sunlight filtered through the only window present in Sakura's room, dragging the kunoichi from her peaceful sleep with a groan. She huffed, dragging a hand down her face before freezing. _No…_ In a flash she raced to the bathroom- or, she would have if she hadn't collapsed to the floor not a foot away from her bed. _This was wrong_.

Memories flashed past her eyes in rapid succession, from the scared little girl in the chunin exams to the true horrors she faced because of Kaguya.

How was she _alive?_

She remembered… She remembered confronting Kaguya in the small cave… Her and Temari were only armed with kunai…

_Temari._

Where was the sand kunoichi? If Sakura was alive…

The girl cast her eyes back down to her hands. Her dainty and callous free hands. They were anything but the hands of a hardened shinobi. _They were the hands of a five year old._ The terror she had repressed since awakening roared back to life with a fury she had never experienced.

Sakura had witnessed the life leave her lover's eyes, yet she was never _this_ truly terrified.

It was then that she noticed her hands shaking. Acceptance was only a step away, for if her body proportions didn't spell out the answer for her, all she needed to do was reach for her chakra. But she _couldn't._ It was like grasping for a single thread in a lake of dirty water. It was there, somewhere, but she couldn't see it. She couldn't see _anything around it_ , for where she normally had unimaginable chakra contained was enough for three clones at the maximum.

Yet, she continued grasping, hunting, searching, all in vain. But she couldn't just _stop._ Sakura was a proud kunoichi, apprentice of Tsunade Senju, a civilian born ninja breaking countless records and barriers.

She was _not_ a mere child. She was not a child, if not for her physical age then for the trials and pain she had been through. But most certainly, _Sakura was not going to live through that suffering again._

* * *

_Haruno Sakura was going to die._

_She had accepted that the instant she saw Kaguya, yet didn't expect it to be so_ soon. _Sakura was bleeding heavily from several slashes across her body, but she hadn't even seen Kaguya move._

_Temari was in a similar situation, pressing a hand to the long wound across her eye. The other had been damaged a week ago, and the now blind kunoichi could feel a steady wave of terror consuming her. It was one thing to face your death knowingly, but it was something new all together to face it - quite literally - blind._

_While Temari had always prided herself on her superior hearing, it was hard to hear anything over the quiet buzz of chakra coming from the center of the room._

_Kaguya had vanished with a smile and a whisper of words neither kunoichi heard, and it was then that Temari realized the true gravity of their predicament._

" _Sakura!" The voice echoed in her ears. Thousands of times had her friend called her name, but never with such urgency._

_The kunoichi whipped around to face Temari, expecting an attack from that direction. There was none, however, and Sakura's confusion only grew as she finally noticed the pale light radiating from the stone floor beneath them._

_It was no longer the single speck of light that Temari had noticed minutes ago. Now it had flared out, crawling up the walls and engulfing the ceiling in ancient runes and symbols. Sakura, the genius that she was, was only able to recognize one of these words, and that was the kanji in the very center of the floor._

'Time'.

" _Time? What the hell?" Her whisper was rushed, frantic, as a foreign sensation tugged at the very core of her being. Sakura struggled,_ shit, _did she struggle. It was impossible, however, to fight what could only be described as the sensation of being ripped from your own body._

* * *

Temari came to terms with her… situation in a different manner than Sakura, yet just as ungraceful.

The blonde awoke in much the same way, confusion marring her features as she replayed the events of the past in her mind.

It was immediately obvious that Kaguya had done… _something_ , but the question of whether this was a genjutsu or reality remained to be proven.

'Time' was the only word that her fellow kunoichi recognized from the sprawling vines of shimmering golden light, (She had seen the runes as they began, and none were identifiable before her eye was damaged) and that only meant one thing in her mind. Time-travel had never been achieved (or even attempted) that Temari knew of, but she supposed something of that nature would be child's play to a centuries old goddess. There was no other explanation for her being seven again besides a complex genjutsu.

From her knowledge, the signature jutsu of Namizake Minato was considered once upon a time for that task, but it was impossible for shinobi to manipulate the seals in the proper way.

Panic was quick to rise in Temari's gut, and she hurried to the bathroom to empty her stomach. By the end of her ordeal tears were streaming down her cheeks, but she couldn't be sure if they were from fear or a genuine joy she had never experienced before.

She was back in time, yes, and considerably weaker due to her young body, but that should mean one thing.

_Her brothers were alive again._

The realization dawned on Temari as she stumbled into her main room. Her teal eyes widened considerably before she sprinted from her room as fast as her shaky legs would carry her.

Without any call of warning she slammed the door of her six-year old brother open, a fresh wave of tears already rising. Her brother was startled into awareness, sitting up while throwing vague and unremarkable insults at Temari. "Kankuro!" She cried, causing the boy to stop his whining and eye his sister with confusion.

"Temari? What's-" Before he could utter another word the blond kunoichi launched herself forward, her arms locking around Kankuro's neck in a grip that suggested she wouldn't be leaving any time soon.

"I'm so _sorry,_ Kankuro! I shouldn't have let you make that choice and I'm so _sorry._ " Temari was unable to keep the words from gushing forth, even if her mind knew that they would only confuse her brother further.

He made a half-assed attempt to push Temari away for a moment, "Temari! What are you sayi- _Ugh,_ your breath smells like shit!"

Temari's small moment of shame caused by his confession was covered in an instant as she pulled away from Kankuro. "What did you just say to me?" Kankuro realized his mistake as soon as he saw the mild rage in Temari's eyes. Rather than slap the back of his head as she would usually do when he swore, Temari waved her hand in casual dismissal.

"Forget about it, Kankuro." She bit her lip for a moment and Kankuro could see the blatant fear in her eyes. For a moment he wasn't sure what she would have to fear when speaking with him until her next question slipped out, "What do you think about doing something with Gaara today?"

There was barely five seconds that passed before Temari was forcefully shoved from her brother's room, the door slamming in her face.

"There's no way I'm talking to that monster and neither should you!" It seemed that was the end of the conversation from Kankuro's end as Temari heard him walking away, muttering something about his sister finally losing it.

Temari huffed, only returning a weak, "He's still our brother, Kankuro." This earned a scoff from inside the room which prompted Temari to take her leave.

Kankuro's words, while proven incorrect again and again, were words that held much more truth behind them in this time. Temari herself was only about seven which would mean that Gaara was… _shit._

Her youngest brother would only be around the age of four. While this meant he would be much more open to affection as he hasn't been abandoned for 12 years, it also meant that Temari had to immediately begin planning a way to stop the Yashamaru incident from happening. Based on what her Gaara had explained, that was the catalyst to fuel the rage and loneliness that would haunt him for years.

These trains of thought only brought courage and determination to Temari, who quickly made up her mind about the future and stopped in front of the last door in the hallway.

Carefully, she brought her hand up to knock on the door. No answer came, though she could feel a consistent chakra from within the room.

Taking a considerable risk, Temari reached out the test the door, and pushed it open slightly upon discovering that it was unlocked.

Temari released the breath she hadn't realized she was holding and called out a gentle, "Gaara?"


	3. Chapter 2 - Specious

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which two kunoichi meet their families.

Morning greetings from her parents were one of the things Sakura missed the most as the war progressed. At first she merely missed their company. There were no warm smiles and questions as she came home from missions, no affirmations of love and affection and gentle goodbyes.

Her longing only increased after they died in one of the many attacks on Konoha. It was something she often discussed with Hinata during their late night patrols. Both kunoichi were in a constant state of mourning for family and friends.

Sakura’s world collapsed when she lost Hinata only a few months after her parents.

When Hinata was gone the change in Sakura was apparent even to those who only knew her in passing. The change was still present now, as Sakura called a response to her parents with fake enthusiasm.

“Are you excited for your first day?” Mebuki flashed a loving smile at Sakura, startling the girl into silence for a moment.

How long had it been since she saw her mother smile? Sakura had almost forgotten what she looked like.

“Yeah!” She cheered, though Mebuki was forced to hold back a frown as she saw the grin far from reaching her eyes.

Sakura kept her fake smile in place as she took a few bites of breakfast, unable to eat more than a small portion before feeling nauseous once more.

“Mom? Is it alright if I leave now?”

Mebuki was clearly startled by the question. Sakura was always one to wake up early in order to prepare for her day, but she never wanted to _leave_ that early. “Are you sure? Class doesn’t start for another three hours.” The tone of her voice was clearly demanding an explanation behind Sakura’s sudden desire to be early.

“I just want to make a good impression on my first day!” Sakura took Mebuki’s question as a form of confirmation, gathering her supplies quickly and strolling to the door. “I’ll see you after class, Mom!”

A few moments passed after the door shut before Mebuki moved again, eyeing Sakura’s half-eaten plate with concern. “What happened to her…?”

\--

_The presence of Hinata was enough to lift the haze of depression from Sakura’s eyes most nights. Her gentle embraces were comforting, prompting Sakura to relax despite knowing that their camp could be attacked at any moment._

_“I don’t know how I would make it through this without you.” Sakura whispered, eyeing the blush that was building in Hinata’s cheeks even after all these years._

_Hinata joined Sakura in a seated position, moving forward to wrap her arms around Sakura’s torso. “You’ll never have to, Sakura-chan. I’ll always be here for you.”_

_Sakura had to bite her lip to hold in a sob, her mind instantly replaying memories of her parents and friends promising the same thing._

_“And I you, Hinata. I swear it.” She would never admit that her voice cracked in that moment, but she could never deny the pure affection swelling in her chest._

_That was the final night she fell asleep in her lover’s arms._

_The final night she kissed Hinata’s lips with a whisper of “I love you.”_

_\--_

“Gaara?” Temari repeated the call when no response came, pushing the door open a bit further. “Can… Can we talk, Gaara?”

Temari knew it was urgent to speak to Gaara, to bring him back to humanity before the mindset of a monster took over. It was early enough to save her younger brother a lot of emotional trauma. The situation would be a touch more challenging if Yashamaru was already dead, but Temari was fairly certain she would make it in time.

Gaara still didn’t reply, so Temari sighed briefly before continuing, “I’m coming in, Gaara.”

Her brother was sitting on his bed and snapped shut the book he was reading as Temari entered.

“What?” All Temari had done was enter the room, but a few grains of sand were already rising to float around Gaara protectively. No wonder she had been so terrified of him as a child.

Temari held up her hands in surrender, doing her best to keep an easygoing smile on her features. “Hey, it’s alright. I’m not here to hurt you. I’m your sister.” It was obvious that he didn’t understand what their relation had to do with not hurting him, and Temari nearly slapped herself for forgetting how their father always treated Gaara.

“What is it you want then?” He didn’t talk as a four-year-old should, Temari noted. Even sitting he held himself with a poise that was only present in older shinobi.

Once again Temari was forced to remember how quickly he had to grow up while her and Kankuro stood by without saying a word. All because their father forbade them from speaking with the ‘monster.'

But now Temari knew better.

There was no monster. There was no demon masquerading as her youngest brother always at risk of killing them. There was only a frightened little boy, giving in to the demon in an effort to protect himself from even his family.

Temari eyed the book still clutched between his hands and felt her heart flutter. At least some things stayed the same. “You’re interested in cacti?” It was a relief, really. Temari knew quite a bit about cultivating cacti from her time spent with Gaara after the chunin exams.

A red tint appeared in Gaara’s cheeks as he moved the book to his side and out of Temari’s line of sight.

“I want to raise them.” He muttered, moving one hand to play with the edge of his shirt.

It would have been difficult, she realized, for Gaara to obtain as many cacti as he had before the chunin exams on his own. He was shunned in town and no shop would even look in his direction. “I can help you.”

Gaara’s eyes snapped to his sister in awe and fascination. “You… you would?”

Temari nodded, moving to sit on the edge of the bed next to Gaara, pleased when the sand made no move other than a slight twitch in her direction.

“I would love to, Gaara."

Almost immediately her brother snatched the book that was next to him, presenting it to Temari with the widest grin she had ever seen from him.

In that instant Temari knew everything would be okay. Her family would learn to piece itself back together as it had once before, and this time she would make sure nothing hurt either of her siblings.

\--

_“It’s… beautiful.” Temari could only whisper in amazement as she took in her surroundings. “You made all of this?” She questioned, only shooting her brother a quick glance._

_“A few months before the chunin exams. This is where I would come at night.” Gaara explained, blushing at Temari’s praise._

_They were surrounded by various cacti and desert flowers, all arranged perfectly so their colors blended together and made one large gradient._

_“I… Father never let us near this part of the village. I always thought it was because of dangers or political reasons but…” She frowned for the first time since entering his safe haven. “Why wouldn’t he want us to see_ this? _”_

_Gaara forced a faint smile. “He didn’t want you two to see me as anything other than a demon. If you saw humanity… I might not have become the monster I once was.”_

_Any amusement present in Temari’s features vanished. Gaara had gradually become more open in talking about his childhood, and Temari made sure she was always there to correct him when needed._

_“You were never a monster, Brother.” She chose to ignore Gaara’s eye roll and continued, “You were misguided and hurt but_ never _a monster. I don’t want you to ever believe that again.”_

_“It’s not something I can just stop believing, Temari.” Gaara sighed, sitting on one of the various sand benches around the garden. “It’s something I was taught to believe my whole life. Everyone I loved betrayed me and by the end… I wouldn’t have hesitated to kill you. If you stood in my way I would have killed you just as I killed countless others.”_

_Temari bit her lip, turning her gaze to the ground. She couldn’t just deny his claim. There was no way she could possibly know what was going through the young Gaara’s mind._  

 _“But that was our fault. Kankuro and I… we abandoned you. We ignored you to follow what Father said and I’m sorry for that.” Finally, she moved to sit next to Gaara and take his hands in hers. “I know words can never express just how sorry we both are. We were the ones who_ made _you the monster, Gaara. And I promise that if I had the chance to change any of it I would. Even if it meant losing my life I would do anything for you to feel as loved as you are now from a young age.”_  
  
_Even after becoming the Kazekage and opening up Gaara was never one for extended physical contact unless necessary. That’s why it completely floored Temari when he reached forward to pull her into a tight embrace._


	4. Chapter 3 - Infracaninophile

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which letters are exchanged.

Seeing Hinata again after two years of mourning was certainly not a task Sakura was mentally prepared for. She had spent all of that time coping with the loss that threatened to push her over the edge.

Perhaps that was why she skipped the first day of classes to train.

Sakura ruled against sending a clone in her place, doubting her chakra would last through her routine. Her obvious lack of chakra still frightened her. While she had absolutely no desire to return to her own time, Sakura longed for her previous strength and chakra reserves. At times she wished she had Naruto's ability to train using hundreds of clones at once.

Sakura shivered at the thought of how much more powerful she would have been if dozens of her trained at once.

She could have been strong enough to protect those she loved.

In a flash Sakura connected her fist to the training stump to dispel that line of thought. She barely winced as she eyed her bloody knuckles. "From only one punch…" Sakura whispered. It had taken years for her hands to be able to withstand intense hits, but she never remembered being _this_ weak. Emerald eyes shifted back to the stump with a sigh. "And no damage done…"

The declaration of her weakness only prompted Sakura to pull back her fist before delivering another punch.

* * *

 Temari should have expected the stares as she walked the village streets with Gaara's hand in hers, but some part of her hoped to avoid that. No matter her age, people usually stayed away from the Kazekage's eldest to escape her fiery temper.

It seemed every whisper led to Gaara's grip tightening just a fraction. Every insult and sneer led to the young boy lowering his head in shame.

He was still too young to fully comprehend just how _different_ Shukaku made him. Temari was certain that Gaara had been told of the beast at this point, but there was no guarantee that Gaara understood the true burden he carried.

"Gaara?" Her tone was cautious, eyeing the sand lazily floating around her brother.

Immediately he tensed, already knowing what she was referring to with her simple question. "After the comments they start throwing things… the sand protects me."

Temari's heart dropped into her stomach. "They… throw things at you?" She struggled to keep her voice even as her upper lip gradually pulled back into a snarl.

Gaara watched Temari in apprehension. Was she going to defend him? It was a new concept to the jinchuuriki.

He didn't reply to her inquiry, opting instead to keep his head down and focus on counting grains of sand around his feet.

It wasn't twenty seconds after Temari asked her question that a rock came sailing through the air towards Gaara. He yelped, too occupied with his sister to pay attention but throwing up a thin wall of sand in defense.

Gaara always knew when something touched his sand. If he didn't hear the impact there was always the variations in his chakra to inform him of the contact. This time, however, there was no signal.

The wall crumbled away to reveal the _growling_ Temari. Her fan was held to her side, and from the gouged lines in the sand it was painfully obvious she had used it to deflect the tiny rock and launch waves of wind towards the attacker.

" _Don't you ever try to hurt my little brother."_

To say Gaara was shocked would be an understatement. He was _astonished,_ and stumbled back a few steps.

" _Brother?_ " A woman cried with blatant disgust in her voice. "Tha-That _thing_ is a demon and should be put down!" Gaara flinched back at the words, prepared for Temari to join the teasing and hurt him.

Had this all been a ploy to gain his trust only to betray him?

"It seems you forget whose son he is. Do you think the Kazekage will appreciate you harming his youngest child?" A different man smirked, clearly about to mention the various assassination attempts that even the citizens were aware of at this point. "Do you forget who his sister is?"

His smirk fell.

There were certain Suna shinobi that even children knew to stay away from. The Kazekage's eldest was one of these people, for even at the age of seven it was well known she would take any measure necessary to protect her family and friends. Little did they know how true that statement was after the future Temari had experienced.

"U-Uh…" Temari narrowed her eyes towards the man, her snarl relaxing into a frown.

Temari turned slightly to better face the loose crowd of people watching the spectacle. "If I hear word of anyone so much as _looking_ at Gaara wrong there will be severe consequences."

With her final warning the kunoichi grabbed Gaara's hand and gently pulled him in the direction of the shop they needed. Throughout the time they walked Gaara's eyes never left the hand that held his. His initial shock at the sand taking no interest in blocking her was dismissed as he realized that Temari's hand was shaking in his grasp, and if he glanced up he could see her grinding her teeth. "Are you mad?"

Her eyes snapped to him for barely a second before returning to the road ahead. "Not at you, Gaara. Never at you." She whispered the last sentence to herself with a look Gaara couldn't identify in her eyes. Regret, perhaps?

"Then… at the villagers?"

Temari bit her tongue for a moment to hold back a sharp comment and explained in a much calmer tone than she wished, "No, not really. I'm mad at our father. He began the tradition of treating you poorly and was the one who inspired fear in the village." Her mouth stayed open for a moment as she debated continuing, "That includes Kankuro and I." Barely a moment passed before she added, "And I'm so sorry for ever believing him."

Gaara wasn't sure how to reply, deciding silence was the best option. It wasn't an easy task for him to voice his emotions. They were something he was forced to keep hidden even at his age, and he wasn't sure how to tell his sister that there was nothing for her to apologize for.

* * *

 " _Don't you_ ever _try to hurt my little brother."_

" _Temari." For a moment Temari thought the new Kazekage was going to scold her for calling him little. It didn't even cross her mind that he might be angry about her digging a kunai into the neck of Gaara's 'attacker' enough to draw blood._

* * *

 Sakura huffed, ripping the torn layer of bandages from her hands to replace them with fresh ones. She had been training for five hours now and was becoming annoyed at how much chakra it took to heal the small wounds across her knuckles.

Her chakra control hadn't wavered much, and she was unbelievable thankful for that. Building up her chakra reserves was a lot simpler than going through her basic control training again.

Throughout her training she had been debating how to approach the subject of contacting Temari. It was essential to know if she held the same memories as Sakura.

Sakura ran through one last training drill that Kakashi had taught her before stopping. The academy had just ended judging by the time, so her mother would expect her home soon.

One thing she certainly wasn't expecting was to see Iruka sitting in her kitchen casually chatting with her parents.

"Iruka-sensei?" A flash of confusion passed through the teacher's eyes, and it occurred to Sakra that there was no reason she should have already known his name.

"Sakura-chan! Iruka-san has been telling us that you weren't in class today." Mebuki continued to hold her gentle smile as she addressed Sakura.

It was never in doubt that Sakura was a genius, yet at this moment she found absolutely no excuse.

"I… I was training." She settled for the truth, though her parents would never know just how intense her training had truly been.

Iruka, despite what Sakura expected, merely nodded in understanding, "Oh, alright. I know it can be quite intimidating to start the academy, but you don't need to worry." Sakura's eyes widened in shock before she masked her expression quickly. "Everyone in your class is very kind and I'm looking forward to teaching you."

Sakura answered with a few hasty words of confirmation that she would attend tomorrow and was simply too overwhelmed today. (Her mother's explanation that she seemed different that morning didn't hurt that defense at all.)

She retreated up to her room after Iruka left, claiming she was exhausted from training. It was about time she wrote a letter to Temari.

_I apologize that it took so long to contact you. There was no excuse to send a letter to the sand when I have never left the village._

_I'm not sure if you know why I am contacting you, really._

_If you do, please write back immediately._

_H.S._

* * *

 Sakura sighed, keeping her eyes on the door to her right with obvious apprehension. For a moment she wished she had gone back further in time in order to raise her chakra levels. At least then she would be able to send a clone to class.

A few moments later the door slid open, and Sakura was seriously contemplating fleeing through the window.

It seemed Iruka didn't notice the kunoichi as he entered, his eyes focused on the papers in his hands. "Morning, Iruka-sensei." The chunin startled, facing Sakura with wide eyes.

"Oh! You're early." Sakura held back a smug smile at his panicked response. She wasn't surprised that he was alarmed by her presence this early considering class _still_ didn't start for an hour and a half.

Sakura only nodded to her sensei before resting her head on her arms and closing her eyes. She knew Iruka would merely assume she was resting, and it was the perfect time to focus on meditation and remastering her chakra control. Since Sakura still had her memories chakra control itself wasn't an issue, but it was challenging to adjust to how little chakra she held.

The hour and a half passed quicker than Sakura had hoped they would. She couldn't deny the excitement at seeing her old friends and teammates, but the guilt hadn't stopped gnawing away at her.

It was _her_ fault that half of the people in her class had died.

She was almost glad they couldn't remember anything.

Hinata (Sakura cursed her luck) was the first student to arrive. Sakura felt her eyes widen as the young girl walked in practically shaking from nerves.

Sakura couldn't stop the flashes of memories that passed through her mind. From comforting hugs and meaningful glances to hands coated in drying blood.

It felt as if Sakura's lungs collapsed and her throat tightened. She turned away from Hinata in an effort to control and hide her raging panic. No, not here. Sakura _refused_ to have a panic attack here. Still, she eyed her trembling hands and felt her body tense further. There hadn't been an attack since-

"S-Sakura-san?" Every ounce of stress left Sakura as Hinata called out to her. "Would it be o-okay if I sat n-next to you?"

Sakura forced a smile, holding back a whimper as she nodded. "Of course, Hinata." The Hyuga's lips curled into a smile, but Sakura could see the concern in her eyes. Hinata had never been dumb, and Sakura's pain was currently something even Naruto would notice.

"A-Are you alright?" Sakura debated how to answer the question while simultaneously promising herself to work with Hinata once again to overcome the stuttering issue.

"No, not really." Hinata tilted her head to the side, clearly about to ask what was wrong when she continued, "There's a lot on my mind. I'll be fine by tomorrow."

That much wasn't a lie. Sakura knew she couldn't go forward in this life if she was constantly reliving every horrible experience from her past. She would never completely block those memories away, but she had nothing against spending some time to herself tonight to get her priorities straightened.

It was essential for her to form a plan. She hadn't received a return letter from Temari yet, but she could begin to work on some aspects that only involved Konoha.

There was much to be done before the time of the chunin exams, and Sakura only hoped that this time she wouldn't lose any of her friends.

* * *

  _It's good to hear from you, Sakura. I was starting to think that I was just imagining everything._

_How are things going in Konoha? Has anything drastic changed from your previous timeline?_

_Nothing is different here that I am aware of yet._

_Well, things have changed but that is only because I have been working to gain Gaara's trust and get the village to accept him. I'd like to prevent a repeat of his last life. I never want to see my family that miserable again._

_Anyways, if you need an excuse you could always use my political visits. I have been to Konoha a few times already (I think) and it would be believable enough that we became friends since we are both around the same age._

_It's good to know for sure that I'm not alone in this, you know?_

_Hopefully we can meet in person soon._

_-Temari_

A sigh escaped Sakura as she read Temari's letter. It was a huge relief to her that the Suna kunoichi remembered their timeline, but it only raised more questions. Had they been sent to the same time or had Temari been here longer? The jutsu was obviously what sent them back, but had it been used before? Sakura wasn't sure if the thought of others from her time was a comfort or a burden.

* * *

  _T_ _emari-san._

_Apparently you didn't catch on, but I was hoping to be subtle in my letters in case they were intercepted. You mentioned names, locations, and our time travel all in one letter. (Although I suppose that is what I am doing now.)_

_I'm sure nothing bad will come of it, but it's better for our villages to not question our well-being._

_Then again I doubt there is any reason for letters between two children to be read._

_Then again you are the Kazekage's eldest daughter._

_Well, it's too late now. I'll blame you if we get killed because of this._

_Sakura_

* * *

Sakura received a return letter only two days later. She carefully broke the seal and opened it, immediately ripping the paper in half as she read the only two lines present.

_Whoops._

_-Temari_

* * *

'Confused' was the closest Haku could come to describing how they felt as their eyes snapped open.

They remembered dying. _Twice._ The second time was technically just the reversal of a reanimation jutsu but the first…

Haku reached for their chest, pulling their loose shirt away to inspect the scar. Or… what should have been a scar. Instead, there was clear skin. A few scattered cuts and bruises, but nothing Haku wasn't used to.

They frowned, just now noticing the size of their hands. This couldn't be...

Haku glanced around in awe for a few moments, identifying their childhood home. Was this heaven?

From what Haku's hearing suggested, their mother was in the next room making… dinner? Haku looked to the window where the setting sun was visible. So, dinner it was.

It was hard for Haku to wrap their head around what was happening. Were they truly back in their younger body? Did they have a chance to make things better? To save their mother and Zabuza?

They flinched as their father entered the room, the stench of alcohol already assaulting their senses.

No, it seemed hell was more fitting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is a little late but hey it's a lot longer at least.  
> They probably will be around this length from now on since I'm finally getting past the beginning stuff. I'm hoping I can update at least once a week but you know *shrug emoji*


	5. Chapter 4 - Renidification

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which a kunoichi begins to reclaim her home and a shinobi is exiled from his.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oops. Let's just pretend it hasn't been 5 months since I last updated this. :3

Haku was never one to take pride in their social skills. They were a capable actor, yes, but they found it extremely difficult to hold conversations not focusing on a lie or conflict.

This lack of social grace only lessened over the years spent with Zabuza, and this realization was suddenly slapping Haku as they stood in front of their mother unable to form words. “Oh? Haku, I didn’t see you there. Is there something you need?"

It wasn’t even a challenging question. All Haku needed to say was a simple ‘nothing’, really. Yet, as their eyes remained on the scattered purple bruises across their mother’s skin they could only ask, “How long?”

“I’m sorry?” At this point Haku had gained their mother’s full attention. She didn’t stop her task of washing plates, but she turned her body to face her child.

“How long has he been hurting you?” Haku could still remember the days it began but… they had to know how much time was left. It was a few months after their father started drinking and becoming violent that Haku discovered their kekkei genkai and ultimately caused the death of both parents. 

Setsuko’s eyes widened considerably and the plate she held fell to the floor. “You don’t know what you are speaking of.” She took a few moments to steady her breathing.

When Setsuko deemed herself calm she moved towards the hall where the broom was kept, her back turned to her child. “I don’t want to hear you say that again, Haku. Understo-” Setsuko had returned with the broom in hand, only to witness Haku grabbing the pieces of the plate from the floor.

But Haku hadn’t moved.

Concentration was etched in Haku’s features as a shifting mass of water gradually brought the fragments into the air. “H-Haku…”

Setsuko wasn’t sure whether she should be terrified of public reactions or proud of her child for mastering her kekkei genkai. “I won’t use it in public. I know about what happened.”

“How do you know?” Her voice was lowered to a whisper, and she found it suddenly difficult to speak.

“How long has he been hurting you?” Haku quickly rounded back to their original question. They would explain their situation to their mom in the future, but right now it was imperative to-

“ _What the fuck?”_

Haku held back a curse of their own. Water splashed to the floor in a rushed fall and Setsuko’s eyes widened in terror.

The thoughts running through Haku’s mind couldn’t even be described as such. They were emotions and instincts telling Haku to protect their mother. Haku stood, watching their father in terror until he took a step towards Setsuko with a kunai clenched in his fist.

Haku has taken many lives, and therefore hardly felt remorse due to a kill. As they watched their father fall to the floor with a blade of ice through his torso, however, Haku could feel nothing but unadulterated regret. Perhaps that was simply due to their mother’s screaming.

“What have you _done!?”_ She cried, running the fallen body of her husband. Setsuko pleaded for the man to wake while Haku stood paralyzed behind her.

“Mo-”

Before they could even finish calling for their mother she spun around with her lips pulled back. “This is your fault! It’s your fault for showing off that damned ability! You _killed him!”_

There was no response that Haku could manage other than taking a small step forward with their hand outstretched. Over time they learned that (with Zabuza at least) a majority of the time it was better to allow your actions to speak for you.

“Don’t come near me! Get out!” Setsuko threw her arm forward, a thin blade of ice leaving her with the motion. Haku didn’t necessarily know that she was inexperienced and that the blade wouldn’t be able to do much damage, but they still didn’t move as it cut a shallow line across their cheek.

Setsuko threw herself back over her husband, her body shaking from the force of her sobs. When no sound was heard other than her own voice she glanced up, prepared to scream once again at her child.

Haku, however, was already gone.

* * *

Not even a week had passed before Sakura found herself living a life similar to the one from years past. Naruto had, once again, immediately developed a crush on her and it wasn’t hard to gain his trust. He was shocked, at first, by the fact that another student had approached him without the intent of insults or harm. Sakura nearly asked for names so she could hunt down the kids that had hurt him. 

Yet, it was the parents that had ingrained the idea of hating Naruto into their kids. Sakura once again debated betraying the village if only to beat some sense into the assholes.

Sasuke wasn’t anything like the broody angst-filled man she once knew. It was almost hard to remember the days when Sasuke was a happy child, but with how quickly their friendship solidified she wasn’t about to question it.

Overall, Naruto and Sasuke hadn’t changed a bit, and Sakura was immensely grateful for that fact. She wasn’t sure what she would do without her two best friends. Granted, Sasuke was much more open and friendly, but she knew that would change when the massacre happened.

Sakura wasn’t able to recall the exact date of the massacre, and that upset her beyond compare. After seeing how Sasuke was consumed by anger and vengeance, she would give anything in order to save both his clan and his childhood.

Despite not knowing _when_ the massacre would occur, she had heard most details of the _how_ and still planned to stop it. Even now she would hear whispers in the streets of Uchiha’s overstepping their boundaries and challenging the authority of the village. Sakura made sure to keep a watchful eye on the Uchihas she passed in the street, searching for any kind of clue.

It was tempting to simply confront Itachi now and convince him to change his strategy.

“Sakura-chan!” Her eyes snapped back to Naruto waving a hand in front of her face. “What are you staring at?”

Sakura quickly replied, “Shino.” Even from this distance she could see the boy tense. While she felt the tiniest bit of remorse for using him as an escape route, he was the only one in her line of sight within the half empty classroom.

“Eh? Why would you be staring at the bug boy?”

Resisting the urge to send Naruto a glare, Sakura sighed. It wasn’t his fault he didn’t have any memories of Shino running in front of a kunai meant for him. “Naruto, don’t be rude. You wouldn’t like it if everyone called you Whisker Boy, hmm?” Naruto huffed, turning away with red cheeks that brought a smirk to Sakura’s features. “I’m only teasing, Naruto. Your name is much too cute to replace.” Sakura flicked her gaze to the right for a second, seeing the eyes of Sasuke trained intently on her. “Your name is cute too, Sasuke. Don’t worry.”

Sasuke quickly looked away with a blush. “It’s not _cute_.” He pouted.

Sakura saw the spark in Naruto’s eye before he had even formed his insult. She wasn’t sure whether or not to be happy that their rivalry remained.

Regardless, it would be impossible for Sakura to explain how lucky and utterly relieved she was whenever she even caught a glimpse of her old friends.

She glanced down to the paper she was writing on, taping her forgotten pencil on her cheek in contemplation. It was almost a race against the clock to record the memories she held of the forgotten timeline. Sakura wasn’t sure how long she would be able to hold on to the important details, and she certainly wasn’t willing to forget any of it.

There were also drafts of plans scattered throughout the (carefully coded) pages. Plans like when she would rescue Sai and Shin. Sakura didn’t want to make Sai live through the hell of ROOT again, but then she debated ridding the village of ROOT entirely.

At this age she wasn’t anywhere near prepared enough to face Danzo, but there were certain situations she could exploit. Naruto had told her all the details of the Uchiha massacre and the events leading up to it, and Sakura wondered if she would be enough to tip the scales of the fight in Shisui’s favor. Perhaps she could convince Itachi to help as well. Knowing that she would face various ROOT members as well as Danzo was intimidating, but she had seen Shisui and Itachi in action before. It was hard to imagine how powerful they would be if they worked together, considering even someone like Sasuke only defeated Itachi due to the elder’s illness.

The only real concern at this point was Danzo’s sharingan. Well, sharingan _s_. Sakura wasn’t sure if he was fully able to utilize their abilities yet (read “izanagi”), but the fight would be considerable harder if he had reached that stage.

Sakura clicked her tongue before scribbling a few notes on what she remembered about the izanagi. There wasn’t a clear cut way to counter the technique other than destroying the eyes or waiting until he ran out of time. With an unknown number of ROOT members for backup, however, waiting it out wasn’t really an option.

There were various plans she was perfecting in case Danzo had masters izanagi. Most of this was the poisons she was carefully crafting and storing beneath her bed. It wasn’t too much of a challenge to recall Sasori’s old formulas that she had analyzed, and most would prove quite effective. In particular, she was sure the one that caused nearly instantaneous blindness would be beneficial. With these poisons she had also procured a hefty supply of senbon. They were sleek, simple, and she could hide them throughout her person.

Despite all his strategies, Danzo wouldn’t expect someone of her age and social standing to be able to utilize senbon, not to mention the complicated poisons.

She could only hope these advantages outweighed her drastic disadvantages.

\--

It was nearly midnight when Sakura felt the sudden spike of a familiar chakra. She was certain any sensors in the village would notice it and respond, but that didn’t stop Sakura from almost tripping in the rush to escape through her window.

Throwing a few of the senbon she kept hidden into her sleeve was almost an afterthought.

It occurred to her that this may be the Final Showdown as she had named it. The moment where defeating Danzo would mean the survival of the Uchiha clan. The moment where she would fully utilize her age and appearance.

Failure wasn’t an option, yet Sakura found herself briefly wondering if her presence would even make a difference. If Shisui hadn’t been able to defeat Danzo and Sasuke only won with Danzo’s suicide, what hope did a seasoned shinobi in a 6 year old body have?

Pinpointing the location of the chakra surge was fairly simple, and Sakura understood why it was familiar the instant she was able to see into the clearing. There Danzo stood over the body of Shisui, and Sakura could only hope she wasn’t too late to save him.

Across from Danzo, however, was Uchiha Itachi, holding one arm to his bleeding stomach while the other clutched a kunai at his hip. Both fighters looked exhausted, and Sakura nearly let out a groan seeing that Danzo’s sharingan eye was already a shining white. So, he had mastered izanagi and even managed to use it once. She had to act before he had the chance to use another.

A kunai was launched from her grasp, and her untrained arms sent it flying nearly 5 feet from Danzo. This did manage to get the attention of both older men, however, and suddenly she was their focus. Sakura didn’t miss the blatant concern in Itachi’s face or the satisfied smirk on Danzo’s.

Before she could react a katana was pressed tightly against her throat and Danzo stood behind her. “Itachi… Such a valiant effort. Are you willing to let a child die, however?”

_Perfect_

\--

Itachi didn’t reply, tightening his jaw and taking a deep breath. His eyes were drawn to Sakura as she let out a quiet whimper, but he was only confused as he studied her.

While the noise she made may have convinced Danzo she was a scared and helpless child, Itachi could see her eyes. There was no fear behind them. Not even a hint of nerves. She almost appeared _bored_. Itachi almost laughed at the sight before him.

Could there have been another?

Sakura wasn’t meant to be here, that much was obvious. It was also obvious that she wasn’t the weak and terrified fan-girl he remembered.

That much was apparent when she threw one elbow back into Danzo’s groin, the man stumbling away barely half a step. The small distance, however, was enough for Sakura to spin before driving two senbon into Danzo’s chest.


	6. Chapter 5 - Longanimity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which a family heals and a thief is caught.

Temari had known from the beginning -when she was sent back in time, that is- that helping Gaara regain the trust of the village would be a challenging quest.

There were various problems that had to be addressed before she even attempted to complete that goal. Yashamaru was an obvious one, but she supposed it would be simple enough to just confront her uncle. The Kazekage was second in the list, yet Temari saw few options there. His only goal when concerning Gaara was to make a flawless weapon. After that failed, he had no qualms with killing his own son.

The final issue was one she would have to consult Sakura on. The seal that had been placed on Gaara at birth was  _ horrendous _ , and after seeing the difference in other jinchuuriki with proper seals, it was high on Temari’s priority list to find a solution. Sakura had always been an academic genius, and Temari could only hope that the konoha kunoichi had retained the memory of proper bijuu seals.

Her mind made, Temari wandered down the halls of her home, not for the first time wishing she was a sensor to locate her uncle quicker. She found him leaving Gaara’s room, and frowned at his pained expression.

She saw no reason to avoid the topic of concern. “So, Father already gave you your mission?”

Yashamaru looked up to her with blatant terror. “What are you talking about?”

Temari had always been a bit of a show-off when it came to her knowledge as a child. Growing up around the Kazekage (both her father and her brother) meant that she had a plethora of intel sources most shinobi could only dream of. It was apparent that Yashamaru was hoping this was just another case of her misunderstanding something and searching for answers.

“I’m talking about the mission to betray Gaara in order to test his control.” Her voice remained even, but Yashamaru only heard the threatening calm before the storm. “The control,” A single eyebrow raised as Temari stalked closer to the man. “Of a  _ five year-old _ child with an improper seal.”

It was no longer a young girl that stood before him, Yashamaru realized. Temari was a cobra baring its fangs and preparing to strike at the slightest agitation. Yashamaru wasn’t one to flinch in the face of danger, but he couldn’t help the shiver that ran down his spine at the sight of the eldest sand sibling narrowing her eyes.

Temari seemed to grow annoyed by the silence and huffed, “Yashamaru, if you go through with your orders it would have… grave consequences. I advise you to wait until I speak with Father about this.” Temari brushed past him with those words, not even sparing a glance back to the frozen shinobi.

\--

Temari hadn’t spoken to her father since before her participation in the chuunin exams. Even then she wasn’t sure how many of her memories contained her actual father and how many were Orochimaru wearing his name as a disguise.

It wasn’t a pleasant line of thought, really. For all Temari knew Rasa had been replaced from the time she was an infant. Had she ever known her father? Had the lives of her siblings all been part of an elaborate and drawn out scheme to gain entrance to Konoha? Temari wasn’t sure if she wanted the answer to those questions.

Still, she found a strange sense of hope blossoming in her chest as she neared his office. Perhaps this was her chance to turn everything around. Perhaps he would finally be a father and Temari wouldn’t have to raise her siblings this time. Perhaps Rasa could help Gaara be accepted.

Perhaps she shouldn’t get too ahead of herself.

“Come in.” Her father’s rasp pulled her from optimistic thoughts back to reality.

“Father.” Temari bowed in respect before approaching the Kazekage, “I have a request, Father.”

“Hmm?” Rasa still hadn’t looked up from his paperwork, clearly annoyed by Temari’s intrusion. 

Temari paused for a few moments, sucking on her teeth and struggling to phrase her request in her mind. “Well, I want you to call off Yashamaru’s mission to test Gaara.”

Rasa’s pen clattered to the floor as his eyes snapped to Temari.  _ “Excuse me?” _ His voice was practically a hiss.

The kunoichi stood her ground, even daring to take another step forward. “Call it off.” She had lived through plenty of heated debates during her time as Gaara’s advisor and ambassador. Rasa wasn’t about to scare her away. “Gaara is too young to have full control of his seal, and the seal was improperly made. In a few years a contact of mine will have a solution to that problem, but until then he must be treated with care and love.”

“A  _ weapon _ does not require pampering.” Any smart shinobi would know that this was the moment to shut their mouth if they wished to survive the Kazekage’s wrath. However, Temari never really did have a good sense of self preservation.

“No, but a scared and lonely  _ child _ does.” Temari’s tone left no room for argument. “Let him be my responsibility. If he loses control under my care then you can train him as you see fit. Until then, let this be his test.”

Rasa, contrary to what Temari expected, smirked. “If that is what you wish.”

The Kazekage turned back to his paperwork without another word.

\--

Haku had nearly forgotten the pain of traveling alone without preparation. This time, at least, they already had the knowledge of edible plants and hunting techniques. It wasn’t a shock that when Zabuza found them the first time they were dying of starvation.

It also didn’t hurt that Haku had mastered pickpocketing civilians that wandered a bit too close.

Survival wasn’t an issue this time. Planning for the future, however, was a completely different story. In their last life Haku had merely been wandering and running from death until Zabuza found them. This time they were healthy and had the resources to stay that way.

The obvious choice would be to find Zabuza again (and hopefully keep them alive this time), but Haku had no idea where Zabuza would be at this point. It was a few years before they had originally met, and for all they knew the shinobi might still be in Kirigakure. Kiri wasn’t quite known as a forgiving place, and Haku was fully content avoiding the village unless absolutely necessary.

Haku was currently in a small village by the name of Narita. It was only a few dozen miles from his home, but its only shinobi were travelers and there was hardly any security.

They had even managed to swipe a beautiful and ornate set of senbon from a passing merchant. The senbon were a shining silver with twisting vines down the length of them. They were useless in combat, unbalanced and horrible to throw.

However, Haku had obtained a kunai that would definitely be useful. It was from the same merchant (seriously how wealthy was that man), and had three prongs so it would be more effective in melee combat. The handle was thicker than average, and coated in seals Haku couldn’t place.

They were low on traveling supplies now, and decided to spend the night pickpocketing in hopes of collecting enough. There was never a shortage of targets in civilian towns, and there were never any quick enough to catch them. Any shinobi wandering through were nearly as clueless as the civilians.

Perhaps that was why Haku let their guard down and targeted the man with bright white hair

\--

Kankuro had never even considered the idea of talking to Gaara. He was far too blinded by fear. His younger brother had expressed various times that he was capable of dangerous things.

Throughout Kankuro’s childhood his father had only spoken of Gaara in negative context. Told Kankuro that his sibling was a killer. A murderous demon with no morals.

Kankuro, of course, hadn’t questioned it. Why would he question the word of the Kazekage? He only wanted the best for Kankuro and his sister, right?

Then why was Kankuro now watching what he had been told was impossible?

He was in his room, leaning his arms against the windowsill and staring at the unfolding events with a furrowed brow. Temari was outside with Gaara the Demon… planting a small garden of cacti. The two were smiling and laughing. Gaara’s sand was even helping move things for them.

Kankuro hummed, resting his head on his arms.

Everything had turned upside down since the morning Temari raced into his room. It was as if she hadn’t seen him in years. Temari often went on missions that lasted a few weeks, yet she never showed that amount of concern for him.

With another quiet sigh he stood, slowly making his way through the halls of the Kazekage building. It took an incredible concentration to push down the dozens of questions racing through his head.

Temari looked up as Kankuro wandered into the gardens, concern and nerves practically shaking his frame. Gaara’s sand was thrown throughout the entire area and Temari’s fan was carelessly laying against a small patch of what looked like grass off to the side. Out of reaching distance should something happen, Kankuro noted.

“Kankuro?” She called.

Gaara immediately sat at attention, body growing tense and sand moving back to curl around his legs in apprehension. A wince was the response of both elder siblings. Even Kankuro, despite being told his brother was nothing more than a weapon, loathed to see a child in such apparent fear at the sight of a  _ sibling _ .

“Hey, Temari… Gaara.” Kankuro nodded to them both in greeting. “Did you…” He inhaled sharply, finally eyeing the impressive garden of cacti and desert flowers they had created. “Did you make all of this?”

“It wasn’t our ideal location, but yes. What do you think?” Kankuro didn’t miss the way that Gaara bowed his head in preparation of a scolding as Temari spoke.

“It’s beautiful.” Kankuro smiled at the way Gaara perked up. “I’ve never seen anything like this in Suna.”

Gaara pursed his lips, wanting to explain every bit of their process but not willing to speak out of turn. Temari gently elbowed his side. “Go ahead.” She whispered.

Then the dam broke and the two eldest Suna siblings gladly spent the next two hours listening to Gaara.

\--

Haku was a genius when it came to stealing. Using a combination of stealth and ice jutsu it was nearly impossible to catch them in the act. Still, it was only a matter of time until  _ someone _ caught them, and Haku knew this.

Jail wasn’t really a concern, however. Haku had broken free of various cells throughout their time with Zabuza, and it was almost a game by the time they died.

They died.

It wasn’t something Haku thought about often, but they were almost certain that their death was the cause of this sudden recklessness. Haku hadn’t stolen much before as they didn’t require much to travel, but Zabuza had certainly ensured that Haku had the skills in case they were needed.

Haku, even with all of the skills that Zabuza had taught them, found themself slacking. Underestimating their targets.

It was a naive mistake, and one Haku had sworn to never make.

Weeks of useless civilians and pitiful shinobi to steal from, however, had dulled their senses. There was nothing that Haku had to be alert for. No threats to avoid. Not even the drunken men in the streets dared to approach them.

So, when Haku saw the wallet hanging on the waist of the wealthy shinobi, they hadn’t hesitated.

Not a single thought came to mind to persuade Haku that this was a  _ very _ dumb idea.

Haku hadn’t even brushed their fingers against the wallet of the old man before he grabbed Haku’s wrist. “What are you doing?”

They were unable to form a response, eyeing the face of the well-known shinobi in terror. “I’m sorry.” They managed, struggling to pull their wrist from the man’s grasp. “Let me go.”

“Can’t do that, kid. Where are your guardians?” Haku flinched, an action noticed by the man.

His expression softened almost instantly. Oh, a weakness for small orphaned children? Something they could exploit.

Haku once again seriously questioned their own morals.

“M-my dad is dead.” Haku forced tears to their eyes. “Mom kicked me out after that.”

They shuffled on their feet, pulling weakly against him one more time for dramatic effect. It seemed as if the man bought it, judging by the concern on his- “Hmm?” Haku froze at the hum from the man. His eyes were on Haku’s hip, and they remembered the decorative senbon and kunai attached there.

The grip on Haku’s arm suddenly tightened. “Where did you get that?” Breathing was suddenly a difficult task as the man questioned Haku. Had the merchant obtained the weapons illegally? Had this man sold them to the merchant?

“I found it.”

With a snort the man moved to grab the kunai from Haku’s waist. As soon as Haku felt the contact on their skin they reacted. Their action was almost entirely one born of pure instinct and panic. Ice crawled from Haku’s fingertips to cover their hand before launching forward and into the man’s arm.


	7. Chapter 6 - Assuage

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which rumors are spread and death is accepted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just wanted to let everyone know that since I'm finally back into the swing of things I'll be making Tuesday the regular update day! Also only one chapter left until the first big time skip woo.

The result was instantaneous. Danzo gasped, stumbling backwards further before tripping over his own feet and falling to the ground. There he sat, in horror, as every eye covering his arm glazed over. “No!” He cried, obviously trying to activate some technique to save him. He formed a few hand signs shakily before the artificial arm fell limp at his side. “What have you done?” The words were snarled with a ferocity that startled even Itachi.

“Blinding,” She began, pointing to the senbon near his shoulder and then the one near his heart, “And this one is just a very useful poison that I learned from an old enemy. Honestly, I’m just shocked it actually worked on every single sharingan you possessed. I was only expecting it to blind your main eyes, but, I mean it’s a nice bonus.”

Itachi wasn’t sure how to react in this situation, watching the girl as she was rambling through emotions he couldn’t quite decipher. “Really I shouldn’t doubt Sasori’s poisons, but you never know. I could have gotten the formula wrong, you know?” Sakura took a few steps back and shook her hands out. “Woah, okay. Wasn’t really expecting that to happen. I had like a dozen back up plans to kill you so you wouldn’t be an issue in the future.  _ God damn _ this feels way too easy.” Sakura turned to Itachi, obviously a bit delirious. “Did that feel too easy to you?”

It was difficult for Itachi to form words then, struggling to overcome the mix of awe and trepidation. In the end, despite the dozens of questions he wished to voice, he simply called, “Sakura?”

Sakura forced herself through several deep breaths. “Yeah, that’s my name.” She quipped. It was a flaw, her rambling in stressful situations. Sakura even recognized that, yet hardly made an effort to correct it. After Naruto-  _ her  _ chatterbox Naruto- had fallen to Kaguya, she found herself babbling pointlessly just to fill the silence he left behind.

Holding back a sigh of exasperation was nearly impossible. Uchiha  _ The God Damn Village Prodigy  _ Itachi awkwardly stuttered his next sentence, “No, I mean- I-  _ Sakura?” _

“Itachi?” And that was when it hit her like a tidal wave. Itachi was never meant to be at this fight. He wasn’t meant to know about it until Shisui’s death. He  _ wouldn’t _ have even known about it… unless he had lived it once before.

It felt as if the weight of the world was lifted from Itachi’s shoulders, while Sakura’s only grew heavier. How had Itachi returned? Sakura and Temari were the only ones in the cave when Kaguya used… whatever technique it was. Was he there, somewhere? Perhaps the body used for his reanimation created some link? It was pointless for Sakura to guess at the options, but it was in her nature to search for answers as soon as a problem presented itself.

“I had my suspicions.” He admitted. It seemed as if neither one was going to explicitly say what they had realized, yet their understanding of the current situation was mutual.

Itachi suddenly froze, looking to where Shisui lay. Sakura followed him as he moved to kneel by his friend’s side, feeling for a pulse. She didn’t miss the nearly frantic way his hands moved.

“I couldn’t save him again.” Itachi’s voice was barely a whisper as he gently shut Shisui’s eyes.

Sakura frowned, placing her hand on Itachi’s shoulder slowly. “You did everything you could, Itachi.”

Not one for long moments of pity, Itachi stood. “At least this time he will have a proper grave.” Sakura moved away from Itachi, giving the elder the chance to say goodbye once more. After a minute Itachi joined Sakura where she stood leaning against a tree.

They remained in silence for a few moments, both taking a chance to fully digest all of the information gained that night. It wasn’t until the initial shock gradually faded that they noticed the presence nearby. “Fuck.” Sakura hissed, spinning to face the mostly hidden chakra signature. Her blood chilled as she caught the flash of a dog mask racing forward to collect Shisui before jumping away.

Of  _ course _ it would be Kakashi to see them. The current Anbu would never ignore such strong and violent chakra flashes from the fight between Itachi and Danzo. Sakura pursed her lips and clenched her fists.

She was certain Itachi had originally had the same plan as her - claim it was all Itachi’s doing and Sakura had merely been in the wrong place at the wrong time. Now, however, there was a witness to her actions who wouldn’t dare lie to the Hokage. Sakura nearly cursed again. If he had seen her kill Danzo then he had most certainly heard her ramblings afterward. The ones in which she admitted to creating the poisons and named an Akatsuki member as her source.

Itachi’s thought process appeared similar as he sighed, motioning for Sakura to follow him. She did without a moment's hesitation. “Should we tell the Hokage the full truth?” He tilted his head in thought.

“Tell him we traveled back in time?” Sakura snorted, “We do have information that may prove it, but he may also assume we are spies.”

Itachi stared down at Sakura. “You’re six.”

Sakura returned the stare incredulously, “Yeah? Is that supposed to mean something?” Ignoring the look Itachi was currently giving her, Sakura continued, “Plus, if the three of us went back, there may be others.”

“Three?”

For a moment Sakura forgot that Itachi hadn’t been in contact with her from the beginning. There was a lot to fill him in on. “Temari of Suna. We were together when we were sent back, so we thought it was only us.” Sakura cast her eyes down, “I mean, we were the only two still alive, so it was a valid theory.”

Itachi didn’t even try to stop the shock that slid onto his face. “ _ Only two?” _

“Kaguya wiped out everything. Her and that damn chakra consuming tree.” Itachi clearly wanted more information, and Sakura hesitantly continued after quickly scanning her surroundings for more Anbu. “Naruto and Sasuke were first. Kaguya knew they were the only real threat to her and didn’t want them in the way.”

Sakura bit the inside of her lip as Itachi sucked in a sharp breath. “Temari and I are determined to prevent that from happening again. We’re going to do whatever it takes to destroy that damn statue before Obito has the chance to bring back Madara.”

The only response was Itachi moving to rest his hand on Sakura’s shoulder in a display of comfort and support. They remained silent for the rest of the trip to the Hokage building.

In the silence Sakura noticed just how injured Itachi was, and was impressed that he didn’t show any signs of pain other than a slight limp. She used what little chakra she had on healing him before they arrived, earning her a nod of appreciation.

Unsurprisingly, there were five Anbu standing outside the building waiting for them. They were escorted to the Hokage’s office, and Sakura wearily kept her eyes on the Anbu surrounding her. She was certain they wouldn’t attack now, but she had no idea how ROOT members would react to her killing their leader.

Sakura wasn’t even slightly shocked at the fact that Kakashi stood next to Sarutobi’s desk when they arrived. She also wasn’t sure how she was supposed to act now. Was she to play the innocent act? Or perhaps simply admit what happened? How was she to explain the poisons or how she knew of Danzo’s abilities?

“Report, Itachi.” The Hokage ordered. He looked displeased, as if trying to hold back a reaction after taking a bite from a lemon.

There was a moment where Sakura was stunned. Even during attacks she was used to Sarutobi’s warm welcoming smile. It seemed this wasn’t a time to be anything less than completely serious.

Then she realized what this could possibly mean for the village. Shisui’s goal was to manipulate Fugaku in order to prevent a coup. Should he fail, the plan would turn to destroying the Uchiha clan, and perhaps eventually the village.

“Danzo arrived when Shisui was about to execute the kotoamatsukami.” Sarutobi inhaled sharply, but didn’t interrupt. “He believed that the peace gained from it would only be temporary and it was necessary to wipe out the entire clan, starting with Shisui. He also wished to acquire Shisui’s eyes for his own personal gain. I was able to keep Danzo away from Shisui long enough for the technique to be finished before Shisui joined the fight. He fell and I was heavily wounded when Haruno Sakura arrived.” She bit her lip at the realization that Itachi was going to be entirely honest. Not that it would help to lie with Kakashi in the room. “She was used as a hostage by Danzo. Danzo had his attention focused on me, underestimating Sakura. She managed to break free and I used that opening to finish Danzo.”

Itachi nearly flinched at the glare Sakura sent him. Sarutobi hummed. “I expect a full written report by tomorrow night.” He sent a thoughtful glance to Sakura, but didn’t question Itachi’s words. It appeared Kakashi hadn’t made a full report yet.

They were fully prepared to make their escape when Kakashi spoke, “Hokage-sama, his report is inaccurate.” Throughout all her days with Kakashi-sensei, Sakura has never wanted him dead so badly.

“How so?” Sarutobi sat straighter, folding his hands on his desk.

“Haruno Sakura was indeed held by Danzo as a hostage, but I arrived in time to see her not only break free, but stab Danzo with two senbon.” Sakura wished she could curl in on herself under Sarutobi’s gaze. “She later explained to Itachi and the dying Danzo that one was blinding, in order to prevent him from using his sharingans, and the other was a fast-acting fatal poison. Judging by her wording these two were created by her with use of recipes from unknown sources. The one used to blind Danzo isn’t recorded in any of our logs.” Kakashi studied Sakura carefully, “Additionally,” Sakura groaned, “The senbon were inserted in strategic arteries that are only made known to high-ranking chuunin and medical nin.”

Sakura didn’t know what to expect now. Not only had she taken out a village elder that would have defeated both Itachi and Shisui, but she did it with unrecorded poisons and deadly knowledge.

Interrogation she expected at the very least.

“Oh?” Sarutobi moved to rest his chin on intertwined fingers. “It’s been quite some time since we’ve had a civilian prodigy. I will be sure to remember all that you have done for the village tonight.” All eyes in the room were suddenly focused on the Hokage in disbelief. Not only was he going to let Sakura go, but without even questioning her? He had to have some sort of ulterior motive. For all Sakura knew he was sent back in time as well.

The Hokage had an easy-going smile as Sakura bowed and managed, “Thank you, Hokage-sama.”

Rumors spread quickly after that. Rumors of Sakura “The Civilian Prodigy” and “The Secret Senju Capable of Overwhelming the Sharingan.” Almost all of them merely made her laugh, but she wasn’t sure how much she enjoyed the constant attention on her. Even her parents, though mad she left the house to do something dangerous in the middle of the night, were shocked and overjoyed to hear just how incredible their daughter was.

It made it much harder to sneak about unnoticed, but Temari was thrilled with the news. It meant that now Sakura would only have opportunities to grow stronger, and they would certainly need that strength when the time came to face Obito.

* * *

Sarutobi wasn’t too surprised when Yamanaka Inoichi entered his office with an unusual request. He wished to personally train Haruno Sakura until she officially joined a genin team. Sarutobi could understand the reasoning. She was a civilian-born kunoichi, which meant there were very few opportunities for her to learn before being part of a team.

It was apparent after her encounter with Danzo that she possessed the skill of a potential prodigy, and the idea of a third prodigy within the span of fifteen years was too enticing to pass up. Add in the fact that she utilized poisons - a useful skill for interrogators such as the Yamanaka clan - and it was almost a given that Inoichi would have this request. Sarutobi, of course, granted his permission immediately as long as Inoichi had approval from both Sakura and her family. It would do well to have a Yamanaka trained prodigy in his village.

He  _ was _ surprised, however, when not four hours later Nara Shikaku arrived with the same question.

Still, he could understand Shikaku’s interest in the young genius. She had created the poisons herself, after all.

It was a bit harder to find reasoning when Aburame Shibi and Inuzuka Tsume walked in the next day.

Sarutobi dreaded the amount of paperwork he would have to complete, but gave his consent with the same requirements as Inoichi. They would have to share Sakura, and Sarutobi was sure that by the end of the year she would choose one to focus her training with depending on her future goals.

The Hokage nearly screamed when Hyuuga Hiashi stepped into his office. It was fine, he supposed. Five days a week the kunoichi could train with each clan head. He made sure to schedule Inoichi and Shikaku’s days between the others. That way she could rest her body while training with the two geared more towards intelligence.

When Uchiha Fugaku sent him a letter, Sarutobi couldn’t even bring himself to react.

* * *

It wasn’t until a week after the Danzo Incident that Itachi and Sakura were able to meet without watchful eyes.

Sakura eyed Itachi from where she sat perched on the edge of a branch, swinging her legs as he settled down on another to face her. He had only heard the beginning of what Sakura had to update him on, and they both mentally prepared for the long conversation ahead of them.

Sighing, Sakura wondered what this would change, for better or worse. Would others surface, revealing they had been sent back in time? She supposed that would only mean they would gain more allies, and she wasn’t about to deny that. There were many challenges awaiting them, and Sakura was burdened with the constant fear of an unchanged future. Still, she knew that together they would do everything in their power to bring down Kaguya and her minions. They could make this work. They had to.

* * *

There was a decidedly light feeling in Temari’s chest as she watched Kankuro play tag with Gaara. Kankuro was currently arguing that using his sand was cheating, but a bright smile stayed on his lips. Gaara only grinned back, using the sand to pull one of Kankuro’s legs from underneath him. It was nice to see that Kankuro’s smile only faded into a playful frown, and not one hint of terror crossed his eyes as it would have only a few weeks ago.

Temari knew they still had a long way to go, but this, this was progress. After spending so long in the dark, she was finally seeing a spark of light.

* * *

Haku has made plenty of mistakes in their life. Inadvertently killing their mother in their first life really stood out as an excellent example. But, they’re fairly sure they’re the only one who can claim to have completely fucked up their life  _ twice. _

After all, who else can claim that they tried to rob  _ god damn Jiraiya of the sannin. _


	8. Chapter 7 - Manuduction

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which someone's a bit... jumpy.

There are certain moments in life where it’s necessary to accept the consequences of actions as they unfold. Moments where no matter how much one may wish to change the current situation, it’s impossible. Moments where the precipice of life and death is beneath one’s feet and it seems the only option is to jump.

Haku was fairly certain that described them right now.

They still couldn’t quite wrap their head around the fact that they just tried to stab  _ Jiraiya of the sannin.  _ Haku wasn’t quite sure if Zabuza would laugh in this situation or run and abandon them to their death.

Not that there was a choice there, really. They were going to die. That was accepted long ago, and death hadn’t really scared Haku since they woke after facing the end twice.

Haku looked to where the log lay in front of them, pierced through by five shards of ice. They didn’t know exactly where Jiraiya was now, and didn’t bother searching. It didn’t matter if they knew. Haku understood that they were nothing in comparison to the strength of  _ Jiraiya the sannin. _

“You a Yuki, kid?” Jiraiya’s voice startled Haku from their depressive thoughts.

It took a few moments for Haku to process the fact that they weren’t yet dead. “You aren’t… going to kill me?” Haku breathed a small sigh of relief when Jiraiya shook his head incredulously. “That’s… thanks."

Jiraiya couldn’t deny the rage that grew inside him when he saw how the young shinobi had been fully prepared to die. Not eager, obviously, but it wasn’t hard for Jiraiya to see the lingering pain in Haku’s eyes. It wasn’t exactly a look he was unfamiliar with.

“You expected me to kill you immediately?”

Haku pursed their lips, looking down in shame, “I did try to rob you.” They shifted their weight to their other foot. “And I tried to stab you with ice when you touched me.”

Jiraiya didn’t miss the choice of words there. “You didn’t stab me because I was trying to take the kunai?”

“That too.” Haku left it at that.

With barely any hesitation they reached for the kunai at their hip, bringing it forward to present it to Jiraiya. “If the kunai is yours, then take it.” Haku shuffled their feet nervously, “I only took it because it was so nicely made.”

Jiraiya had been with the Ame orphans long enough to see that wasn’t the whole truth. The kunai was beautiful and useful, yes, but it was clear that Haku didn’t have many belongings, and the thought of parting with one of the few they treasured wasn’t exactly optimal.

“It belonged to my student, Namikaze Minato.” At Haku’s blank look he elaborated, “Konoha’s Yellow Flash.”

Despite not knowing too much background information on him, the Yellow Flash was a name Haku couldn’t forget. In their last life they prided themself on their speed. Zabuza had even once commented that at the rate they were improving, Haku may have one day matched the Yellow Flash himself.

“Keep it, kid.” Haku looked to Jiraiya in shock, “Maybe I can even teach you how to use it, if you don’t have anywhere else to be.”

Haku recognized the invitation to train with him, and nearly fainted. They didn’t have anywhere to be until they wanted to meet Zabuza, in fact.

The thought of using Minato’s kunai only added to Haku’s glee. It was obvious they would never know how to use Minato’s techniques, but the kunai were still deadly in their own right. Not to mention the kunai would give Haku a certain intimidation factor.

Haku then took a few moments to admire their kunai before adding, “My name is Haku, by the way.”

\--

It was almost two weeks into training when Haku was finally interrogated by Jiraiya. They had expected it sooner, honestly. Both were fully aware that age meant nothing in the world of shinobi, yet Jiraiya had been nothing but trusting to his young student.

Haku had various theories about guilt and trying to fix past mistakes, but they wouldn’t dare mention any of them.

Truthfully, Haku wasn’t sure if Jiraiya was going to question them at all, but the incident in the market didn’t leave Jiraiya much of a choice.

The two shinobi were browsing a weapons stall in the marketplace of a village not too far from Haku’s home. Apparently not far enough, for just as Haku was reaching out to inspect a set of senbon a hand grabbed theirs. Jiraiya hadn’t noticed at first - he was too busy chatting up the store manager - but Haku knew they would be able to handle whatever this threat was.

It was a familiar face, but one Haku found themself unable to place.

Haku jerked their wrist back, but their body still wasn’t strong enough to break free. For a moment they were overwhelmed by anger. What was it with people grabbing their wrist lately?

“It’s you!”

Haku really wasn’t sure what that was supposed to mean. Yes, it was indeed Haku. They had done dozens of illegal things in their life, so he was going to have to elaborate a bit.

“You killed Fuzen!”

Oh.

That was where Haku knew this man from. He was Amari Hidou, who used distant relation to the daimyo to elevate his status.

He was also one of their father’s friends. One that Haku had seen far too often in their old life.

They only realized that they were standing there completely dumbfounded when the man shook Haku’s arm rather roughly and continued, “Oi, brat! Do you have anything to say for yourself?”

Haku leveled Amari with the cold mask in place that they hadn’t had to use since dying. Today  _ really _ wasn’t a good day.

\--

Jiraiya was immediately ready to jump to his student’s defense when he noticed the man approaching, but stayed back for a moment. It was obvious the man had a personal vendetta against Haku, and Jiraiya wasn’t about to pass up this opportunity for information. Haku was a quiet boy, and Jiraiya wanted to gain a bit more trust with him before starting an interrogation.

It was almost a struggle to continue chatting with the store worker when the man took Haku’s wrist and began yelling.

Somehow, it wasn’t a surprise that Haku had killed before. Jiraiya knew by the kid’s eyes that he wasn’t exactly inexperienced as a shinobi. Not to mention Haku’s reactions to physical contact and certain phrases.

Jiraiya didn’t like to linger on thoughts of what he might have experienced.

“Oi, brat! Do you have anything to say for yourself?” Jiraiya was curious as to what Haku might respond. Would he defend himself for murder? Was it in cold blood or merely the challenging duty of a shinobi? Jiraiya suddenly wished they weren’t only able to see Haku’s back. Perhaps they would be able to gather some sort of information from his reactions.

Still, he could see how Haku’s appearance was impacted by this encounter. The boy never had amazing posture, but now he was standing straight, and nearly every muscle in his body looked tense.

Haku didn’t reply to the question, at least, not at a volume Jiraiya could hear. Jiraiya did, however, notice the chill in the air as Haku’s smooth chakra welled up and rippled off him in waves. He was amazingly gifted in chakra control. It was as if he had been through the training already.

It was clear when the man said something to Haku in a low tone that Jiraiya was  _ once again _ too far to understand. A sudden spark of chakra shot from Haku towards the man with a malicious intent. Obviously, the untrained man was startled and shaken by the foreign sensation. Haku used this to his advantage, pulling away from the man but twisting so that Haku now held his arm flat against the weapon table. Minato’s kunai hovered over the man’s open palm with steady precision.

Jiraiya finally stepped forward, able to hear the end of Haku’s words, “Where did you get that information?”

The man sneered, probably preparing some arrogant response, when Haku lowered the kunai to press the end of it into the man’s hand. He was a civilian, and obviously didn’t even know enough to free himself from this situation. “Don’t make me ask again.”

“Fuck! Setsuko told the village what happened! Get the hell away from me!” With expert speed Haku withdrew the kunai and placed it back at his hip. “Demon!” The man only found the courage to say this one word before sprinting away through the small crowd that had gathered.

Haku didn’t even glance at Jiraiya as he stalked over to his mentor. His chakra was contained now, though still raging against the confines he had set.

“Sorry about that.” Jiraiya gushed to the man at the store, “I’ll pay for any damage he caused.”

Haku finally glanced up at this with wide eyes. “They.”

Jiraiya eyed Haku for a moment, understanding settling in. “Any damage  _ they _ caused.”

With an approving nod Haku moved to walk away. Jiraiya let them go. He figured after that incident Haku would need to release a bit of their anger.

He also knew that now an interrogation was in order.

\--

“So, they?”

Haku tilted their head in confusion. It wasn’t the topic they expected Jiraiya to begin with. “Yeah. Gender hasn’t really been something I can associate myself with. They fits me better than he or she.” Haku looked down to the cup of tea they held as they spoke.

“You look confused about it.”

“Mm.” Haku shook their head in denial and began running their finger along the edge of their cup, “I just didn’t expect you to start with that line of conversation. Usually people don’t try to understand or accept it.” Jiraiya looked ready to fight whoever had invalidated Haku before they continued, “You can ask me whatever you want about my past. At this point you have a right to know since I’m going to be your student.”

Jiraiya did not point out that Haku already was his student.

“Who’s Fuzen?”

Haku’s finger stopped moving. “My father.” They didn’t even try to stop from falling back behind the cold mask.

“Why did you kill him?”

Their knuckles were white from the grip on their cup. “He…” Haku took a deep breath. “He was violent. With my mother and I. The entire village hated any kekkei genkai, and my father caught me using mine. He would have gathered a mob to kill us.”

It wasn’t hard to see that Haku wasn’t telling the whole truth, but Jiraiya wasn’t sure to what extent. “And your mother?”

Haku licked their lips, tapping their finger rhythmically against the tea cup. “She tried to attack me when it happened. I don’t know how she is now.” Jiraiya moved to pay the people at the stand they were eating at. “All I know is that word got around since Amari just appeared.”

Jiraiya hummed, deciding that was enough for the day. Really, that was all he needed to know. He still didn’t even know the surnames of any of the Ame orphans.

When it was clear they were both done talking and eating, Haku moved to stand outside and wait for their teacher.

Haku looked around before their gaze settled on a pair of women conversing in hushed tones. Every few sentences they would send Haku a pointed glare. Haku’s eyes flickered a few moments between the women and the poster hanging next to their heads. A reward poster with their face drawn across it.

Well, shit.

\--

It wasn’t until two months later that Haku finally started to learn the summoning jutsu. Jiraiya explained that performing it without a contract would hopefully bring Haku to the domain of the animal they had a natural affinity for.

Haku had no clue what kind of animal they would end of contracting. Somehow toads fit Jiraiya, but Haku wanted no part in that. They could only assume it would be an arctic animal considering their ice jutsu. A fox, perhaps? That would be ironic the next time they met Naruto.

A polar bear seemed not to fit Haku in any way, nor did the wolf aside from the loyalty aspect. A snowy owl could prove to be useful in message delivery. Haku didn’t know of too many arctic animals, but from their options they considered that perhaps it would be either the fox or wolf.

The instant the technique was performed they found themself surrounded by ice and snow. Despite being used to the cold, Haku was still driven to pull their jacket a bit tighter around their shoulders.

“Oh? Who are you?” The voice was quite high-pitched. Haku spun quickly, prepared to face what was quite possibly their future summoning animal.

They weren’t expecting to stare down at a small arctic hare.

Fortunately, they still accepted Haku and they were able to sign a summoning contract before returning to Jiraiya. The sannin at least had the sense not to laugh. After all, he had seen how useful his toads and Tsunade’s slugs were.

Haku quickly found a primary summon in Tora, the arctic hare that had first greeted them. They often enjoyed teasing her about her name, to which she would reply by kicking or biting the shinobi.

Tora was long and agile, built for speed with bright white fur and black ears. Haku warmed up to her as soon as they got over having hares for summons. During the nights that Jiraiya was gone Haku often spent the time conversing with Tora. The hare never judged what Haku admitted, and soon they even found themself telling her of their deaths. Tora believed Haku, much to their shock.

There was also the discovery that Tora was extremely protective of Haku after they shared their life story with her. She still didn’t even trust Jiraiya, and was almost a constant presence in their travels.

Despite the original hesitation with summoning hares, Haku found that they couldn’t be happier with the choice. The hares they knew were welcoming, friendly, and ready to help whenever they needed it. Haku wouldn’t admit it, but the friend they found in Tora was exactly what they needed.


End file.
